Poultry farmers have called on the government to include eggs on the menu of the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP) to enhance the nutrition of beneficiaries of the programme.
They said the initiative would also help generate income for the farmers.
Presenting the case of the farmers in Accra Wednesday, the Ghana National Association of Poultry Farmers (GNAPFS) said intake of eggs among Ghanaians was very poor, adding that ‘research has shown that Ghanaians consumed below 20 eggs per person per year out of the five million eggs that are produced daily by the poultry farmers in the country’.
The association attributed the low intake of eggs to what they say is the myth surrounding the consumption of eggs and the perceived high cholesterol they contained.
Addressing a news conference to launch an advocacy project of the association, the National Chairman of GNAPFS, Mr Kwadwo Asante, said children at the basic and secondary levels of education required wholesome animal protein for good tissue development.
‘Eggs are the cheapest but most qualitative source of such protein that can correct the huge problem of malnutrition among schoolchildren,” he stated.
The media advocacy project is part of the association’s campaign to ensure that all age groups, especially children, consume eggs regularly to enhance their nutritional status and prevent malnutrition among schoolchildren.
Research has shown that beans constitute the main source of protein in the GSFP menu served children in many of the regions.
The GSFP started in 2005 in compliance with the Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development Programme.
Making a presentation on the nutrients in eggs, a nutritionist. Dr Hannah Adjei, said eggs were a “perfect’ meal which had a lot of nutritional values, including protein, selenium, vitamins, iodine, iron, potassium, among many others, that were essential for the growth of the human being, especially children.
She added that the eggs become harmful only when they are consumed in excess.
Regular intake of eggs is good, she stressed.